Town & Country features the latest in luxury, from beautiful homes, sumptuous dining to exotic locations. In 11 gorgeous annual issues, Town & Country covers the arts, fashion and culture, bringing the best of everything to America's trendsetters
1970 PRIMARY STAGES Dina Merrill, who died in May, regularly appeared in the pages of Town & Country throughout her 93-year life, but this February 1970 story was her debut with daughter Nina Rumbough. Merrill, who was the daughter of heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post and financier Edward Francis Hutton, grew up wintering at Mar-a-Lago—her family’s Palm Beach estate, now known as the “winter White House.” She eventually set off for Hollywood to become a star. Merrill was among the first of the society swans to turn her prominence into a brand; the story shown here announced the launch of a cosmetics line.…
My Paris Couture week began, somewhat improbably, in Cumberland, Rhode Island. I was invited there to visit Tiffany & Co.’s holloware workshop, where the company’s most treasured silver pieces (and the trophies for the U.S. Open and Super Bowl) are still made by hand. You will read about what I witnessed there in our October issue, but for now I’ll just say that the experience left me thinking that, at a time when the future of fashion and retail is churned over constantly, handcraftsmanship— that most traditional of art forms—may show us a way forward. After seeing the painstaking care, skill, and, frankly, love that went into each engraving, I thought not about how much the results might cost but about the fact that they should really cost more. My…
VICTOR DEMARCHELIER “She’s very easy to work with,” the photographer says of Billie Lourd, the subject of this issue’s cover story, “TAKING THE LEAD” (page 142). Like Lourd, Demarchelier stands on illustrious shoulders—those of his father, fashion legend Patrick. SARAH PAULSON In “TAKING THE LEAD” (page 142) the actress talks to Billie Lourd, her American Horror Story co-star, about Lourd’s mother, the late Carrie Fisher. Paulson says, “Billie reminds me of Carrie in many ways. She’s an original and utterly herself. This apple landed deliciously close to the tree.” LIESL SCHILLINGER In “THE AGE OF INFLUENCE” (page 150) Schillinger writes about the rise of social media “influencers,” whose power, she says, “is on the wane after the Fyre Festival fiasco.” Still, she adds, “I think the ‘legends in their own…
O IS FOROIL Once upon a time, putting coconut oil on your face seemed a dubious strategy destined to lead to breakouts. But now that we use it as a mouthwash, makeup remover, and moisturizer, lip oil is the natural next step. Elizabeth Arden’s new tinted formula is a nonsticky stain that lasts long after the first swipe. We’re as partial to the color options as we are to the chic circular case. THE HEAT INDEX: INFRARED SAUNAS Just above New York City’s French restaurant du jour, Le Coucou, and the nightclub the Blond are five rooms in the 11 Howard hotel that were deemed too noisy for overnight guests. Luckily for the jetlagged and burned-out among us, they have been fitted with infrared saunas by HigherDose, so you can…
Richard Holbrooke once said that diplomacy is like jazz, “a constant improvisation on a theme.” But it’s hard to make music, or navigate international affairs, without the required players. The United States has 188 positions for ambassadors around the world, but only 16 candidates have been nominated by President Trump. And at press time just five have been confirmed by the Senate. Some of the openings are waiting for career diplomats, others political appointees— usually fundraisers for the sitting president. Currently Callista Gingrich, the wife of former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, is the nominee for ambassador to the Vatican, and New York Jets owner Woody Johnson has been nominated for the UK. Neither has been confirmed. So, with nominations in limbo and embassies around the world sitting empty,…
1952 CLAREBOO THE LUCE was ambassador to Italy. 1969 WALTER ANNENBERG was ambassador to the UK. 1968 SARGENTSHRIVER was ambassador to France. 1986 RONALD LAUDER was ambassador to Austria. 1997 FELIXROHATYN was ambassador to France. 2013 CAROLINE KENNEDY was ambassador to Japan. 2017 WOODYJOHNSON has been nominated ambassador to the UK.…
